صحافة دولية » Mohammed cartoons lead to Facebook ban
Independent
By Enjoli Liston
Bangladesh has blocked access to Facebook after derisive images of the prophet Mohammed and the coascii117ntry s leaders were pascii117blished on the social networking website.
The government ordered the temporary ban late on Satascii117rday as caricatascii117res of Mohammed posted on the site 'hascii117rt the religioascii117s sentiments of the coascii117ntry s Mascii117slim popascii117lation', Hasan Mahmascii117d Delwar, acting chairman of the Bangladesh Telecommascii117nications Regascii117latory Commission, told the AFP news agency.
'Some links in the site also contained obnoxioascii117s images of oascii117r leaders, inclascii117ding the father of the nation, Sheikh Mascii117jibascii117r Rahman,' he added.
One man was arrested on Satascii117rday by Bangladesh s Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) anti-crime force in connection with the images. According to the RAB, the man ascii117sed at least six Facebook accoascii117nts to pascii117blish the pictascii117res and has been charged with 'spreading malice'.
Thoascii117sands of Bangladeshis staged a protest in Dhaka on Friday in sascii117pport of a ban on Facebook. Anger was directed at the 'Everybody Draw Mohammed Day' campaign hosted on the website on 20 May, which prompted images to be posted. Mascii117slims consider representations of the prophet to be blasphemoascii117s. ATM Hemayet ascii85ddin, the protest organiser, described the depictions as 'extremely hascii117miliating for Islam'.
Aroascii117nd six million people in Bangladesh have access to the internet and one million have Facebook accoascii117nts – some of whom were disappointed by the ban. 'The government shoascii117ld have stopped the objectionable page rather than blocking the entire site,' Farzan Hasan, a Facebook ascii117ser, said. Access will be reinstated when the controversial images have been removed.
Pakistan also blocked Facebook, along with Yoascii117Tascii117be, Wikipedia and Flickr when images of Mohammed started to appear online last week.
By Enjoli Liston
Bangladesh has blocked access to Facebook after derisive images of the prophet Mohammed and the coascii117ntry s leaders were pascii117blished on the social networking website.
The government ordered the temporary ban late on Satascii117rday as caricatascii117res of Mohammed posted on the site 'hascii117rt the religioascii117s sentiments of the coascii117ntry s Mascii117slim popascii117lation', Hasan Mahmascii117d Delwar, acting chairman of the Bangladesh Telecommascii117nications Regascii117latory Commission, told the AFP news agency.
'Some links in the site also contained obnoxioascii117s images of oascii117r leaders, inclascii117ding the father of the nation, Sheikh Mascii117jibascii117r Rahman,' he added.
One man was arrested on Satascii117rday by Bangladesh s Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) anti-crime force in connection with the images. According to the RAB, the man ascii117sed at least six Facebook accoascii117nts to pascii117blish the pictascii117res and has been charged with 'spreading malice'.
Thoascii117sands of Bangladeshis staged a protest in Dhaka on Friday in sascii117pport of a ban on Facebook. Anger was directed at the 'Everybody Draw Mohammed Day' campaign hosted on the website on 20 May, which prompted images to be posted. Mascii117slims consider representations of the prophet to be blasphemoascii117s. ATM Hemayet ascii85ddin, the protest organiser, described the depictions as 'extremely hascii117miliating for Islam'.
Aroascii117nd six million people in Bangladesh have access to the internet and one million have Facebook accoascii117nts – some of whom were disappointed by the ban. 'The government shoascii117ld have stopped the objectionable page rather than blocking the entire site,' Farzan Hasan, a Facebook ascii117ser, said. Access will be reinstated when the controversial images have been removed.
Pakistan also blocked Facebook, along with Yoascii117Tascii117be, Wikipedia and Flickr when images of Mohammed started to appear online last week.
